Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-29

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Nowadays, a growing number of people with health problems are trying alternative medicines and treatments instead of visiting their usual doctor.

Do you think this is a positive or a negative development?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 6.0)

It is often argued by some people that in recent years people are suffering various illnesses have turned to alternative therapies such as herbal medicine, physiotherapy, and yoga rather than consulting conventional doctors. Although some might disagree with this notion, but I believe that this trend is largely a positive development not only because of affordability and low potency but also because of more natural and effective.

There are multiple reasons associated with this development. Firstly, people are attracted to be natural. As patients having chronic backache, they prefer to visit a physiotherapist or massage instead of surgery and painkillers. Take an example of Health Minister of China, recently attributed in his interview that he always likes to take herbal treatment and physiotherapy. Thus, alternative treatments are quite beneficial for healthy living standards

Secondly, herbal and natural therapies are of low potency. These are less harmful and more effective. As patients suffering fever use herbal tea and get relief. For instance, a huge number of programes on different national TV channels are trying to aware public about the threats of high potency tablets. Hence, herbal therapies have a mega potential to turn people into natural living styles.

Finally, I believe that allopathic medication is very expensive. As people are suffering inflation and unemployment so they are unable to afford expensive treatments.

To sum up, although visiting conventional doctors is crucial especially in terms of best treatment but I believe that government should take serious initiatives to make the health treatment affordable and convenient.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses the prompt and maintains a clear position throughout. However, the development of ideas is somewhat superficial. For instance, the argument regarding 'low potency' is confusingly phrased and lacks a clear logical link to why this makes alternative medicine better. The example of the Chinese Health Minister is relevant but lacks sufficient detail to fully support the claim. To improve, you should expand on your points with more nuanced explanations rather than listing them briefly. The conclusion is a bit contradictory, as it suggests the government should make conventional medicine more affordable, which slightly shifts the focus away from the original question about the trend toward alternative medicine.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into paragraphs, and there is a logical progression of ideas. You use basic cohesive devices like 'Firstly', 'Secondly', and 'Finally' to signal the structure. However, the use of these devices is somewhat mechanical and repetitive. Additionally, some sentences lack smooth transitions, such as the opening paragraph where the use of 'Although... but' is grammatically incorrect and disrupts the flow. Referencing is generally clear, but the connection between sentences within paragraphs could be improved to create a more cohesive argument. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct points.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, including terms like 'conventional doctors', 'chronic backache', and 'allopathic medication'. However, there are instances of imprecise word choice and awkward collocations. For example, 'low potency' is used incorrectly to describe a benefit, and 'mega potential' is too informal for an academic essay. There are also errors in word formation, such as 'trying to aware public' instead of 'trying to raise public awareness'. To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise academic vocabulary and ensuring that collocations are natural and accurate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While you attempt complex sentences, they often contain errors that impede clarity, such as the opening sentence: 'Although some might disagree with this notion, but I believe...'. The use of 'but' after 'although' is a common error. There are also issues with subject-verb agreement and article usage, such as 'As patients having chronic backache' and 'attributed in his interview'. While these errors do not completely prevent understanding, they occur frequently enough to limit the score. Increasing the number of error-free complex sentences will help improve your grade.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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